The Hummus Blog

Eat hummus. Give chickpeas a chance...

If you are a Hummus lover, you’ve probably heard – or even tasted – the big names, such as Abu Hasan and Said But the Hummus scene in Israel has a lot more to offer to the hungry foodies There are hummus places everybody knows, the ones included in every tourist guide. There are places only locals know, which are always full of surprises. And then, there are those hidden gems that even most Israelis have never heard about. From Nahariya in the north to Eilat in the south – here are our 10 secret hummus places. Ha-humusia shel Dani (Dani’s hummus place) 33 Hagaaton blvd., Naharyia • 04-9001510 Naharyia is one of the most northern points in Israel, a small, almost remote town, which houses one of the best hummus places in the country. In Dani’s hummus place they make a smooth Galilee style hummus, which is served with a generous amount of fine Galilee olive oil. The pine nut hummus is excellent, and you should also try the falafel balls, that are always freshly made and has the most beautiful herb-green color inside once you bite them. Hummus Ful Issa Salah ad-Din square (on the entrance to the [...](image)

We don’t really need a special holiday to celebrate hummus, but the Hummus Day is certainly an initiative worth mentioning and a great PR for hummus. So why don’t you tell your friends about it? Hummus Day is an annual event celebrated on May 13th. It was started by Ben Lang, Miriam Young and a team at a hackathon in Tel-Aviv in 2012. The event celebrates hummus, and encourages people to eat it, talk about it, organize and participate in special events around the world (a list of which you can find here) that are dedicated to hummus. In past years it was already celebrated by hundreds of thousands, many of which took photos of themselves eating hummus and shared them on social networks. There’s also a crowdsourced map that was created to show hummus places around the world. The Hummus Day team also encourage people to eat hummus for breakfast, lunch and dinner on the day itself, which we don’t recommend. Eating hummus several times a week is enough – it’s a good idea to let your digestive system rest for a day or too between one plate of hummus and the next. If you do try eating hummus 3 times a day, make sure it’s [...](image)

“Fatah and Hummus operate in a constant state of conflict. Fatah rules the West Bank. Hummus rules the Gaza Strip… Fatah is largely a secular political movement, while Hummus is a deeply religious Islamic political movement”. Ben Carson The hilarious quote above comes from Republican candidate Ben Carson’s speech, in a Republican Jewish Coalition event, held in Washington, D.C yesterday. Being an esteemed pediatric neurosurgeon, one would assume that Carson is perfectly capable not only to distinguish between Middle Eastern foods and terror organization, but also to correctly pronounce words in foreign languages. On the other hand, one would also assume that someone with scientific education wouldn’t argue against the theory of evolution. Ironically, this priceless stumble was during a speech that was supposed to prove that Carson is not as ignorant about foreign policy as his critic claim. Whether sloppy and reckless as some claim, or just plain stupid, Carson’s political career doesn’t seem very promising at the moment. He did manage to put smiles on many faces though. Like CNN Brenna Williams, who was one of the first to make the association between Carsons and the classic Sacha Baron-Cohen’s sketch from the 2009 mockumentary “Brüno”: Isn't pita bread [...](image)

A new web series with surprising funders, market Israel as a center of culture and hitech and a hotbed for religious pluralism, but mostly as an ideal place for excessive drinking and casual sex. The hummus in the name is merely symbolic. “Hamburger Hummus” is a new web comedy series of seven short episodes (3-4 minutes each) aired last week. A series we think might draw much attention in the forthcoming weeks. The series shows Israel through the eyes of six American bloggers, attending a fictional conference (“Blogocon”) held in Tel-Aviv. It’s a small yet very colorful and vocal group of people, eager to make the best out of TLV and Israel in general. “The best” according to Hamburger Hummus, includes attending gay parties, getting medical marijuana treatment, praying on the Temple Mount, impersonating as a startup recruit, and having a quickie in the lavatory of a club after excessive drinking (in a somewhat miserable timing, in the same week as the pub gang rape scandal). Watch the trailer (30 seconds) and you’ll understand: So, the content and the language aren’t exactly politically correct. And what makes it especially interesting is that it’s clear this is hardly a low budget production – yet it’s not [...](image)

Tnuva, an Israeli company recently acquired by a Chinese food giant, has entered the Israeli packaged hummus market, where it is in direct competition with the companies behind American hummus brands Sabra and Tribe. Next stop: US. Israeli food manufacturer Tnuva had recently shipped new packaged hummus products to the Israeli market, under the brand “Galilee Delights”. The new products, first in a line of refrigerated salads, are manufactured by the local Vita-Pri Galil which is already known for the Yad Hamelech brand of packaged salads, sold in Israeli food marketing chains. Entering this market, Tnuva will not only be in direct competing with both Osem (Tzabar Salads) and Strauss Group (Achla Salads), who own together some 70% of the $200 million Israeli packaged hummus and the refrigerated salads market. It will also compete with several food chain’s private brands. On a global level, Tnuva was acquired earlier this year by the Chinese food giant Bright Food Corp., mainly for it’s portfolio of dairy products and dairy manufacturing technology. Bright Food’s declared strategy was to use Tnuva’s knowledge in manufacturing and marketing dairy products in China. Nevertheless, Bright Food does seem to be interested in the European and American food markets. Shell day open supermarket chains in the US, guess who they going [...](image)

It’s the easiest salad to make and it is unbelievably good. It’s great as an aperitif or a side dish and you can also eat it in a pita bread. Try it and you won’t be sorry. I got this surprising recipe from Hedva, a charming lady with a kosher catering business, who defines her expertise as “affordable gourmet”. I admit I was kind of skeptical – how tasty can a recipe that simple be? On the other hand – so is hummus. So I tried and couldn’t believe how good it was. It’s the ultimate salad – tasty, filling, healthy, great if you’re vegaterian or vegan, suitable for every occasion and kosher for all religions. You should certainly try it. Ingredients 1 medium onion, finely chopped 500g fresh spinach, chopped, coarsely chopped 250g cooked chickpeas 3 tablespoons oil + olive oil to sprinkle a handful of chopped parsley Preparation Fry the onion shortly in a pan, than add the spinach and stir-fry on several minutes until it softens just a little. Add the cooked chickpeas and continue stirring for 3-4 minutes. Remove from the stove and put in a bowl. Add the parsley and stir. Sprinkle some olive oil and serve hot or cold. Notes: The secret of [...](image)

It’s great new to does on a gluten free diet, but the chickpea-pasta more healthy in general, and some say it’s even tasty. Banza is a line of pasta products from a company with the same name, operating in Detroit, Michigan, since 2013. They manufacture pasta in a few standard forms, such as Fusilli, Conchiglie, Pene, and more. But what makes their pasta special is not form or color, but that it is made not from chickpeas ruther then wheat flour. Why should anybody want to eat pasta made of chickpeas? Well, besides the apparent advantage for gluten-sensitive people, it’s also a good choice for people with other health issues in mind. In an interview they recently gave to The Hafingtons’ Rick Camilleri, founders Brian and Scott Rudolph, explain that their product is more nutritious and healthy in any way. It contains twice the protein, four times the fiber and half the carbohydrates regular pasta has – which makes it healthier for people diabetes and hear disease risk factors (which makes most people in developed countries). Under the Our mission page in the company’s website, inventor Brian Rudolph explain that the chickpea pasta was a solution to his own gluten sensitivity. He made the first prototype [...](image)

Sabra had to recall some 30,000 cases of its Classic Hummus due to possible contamination with Listeria. Hummus manufacturer Sabra (Sabra Dipping Co., co-owned by PepsiCo and Israeli food manufacturer Strauss) announced earlier this week that it is voluntarily recalling some 30,000 cases of its “Classic Hummus” due to possible contamination with Listeria. Prior to the announcement, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development officials reportedly learned about the risk of contamination andthen informed the company and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria which usually attacks children, pregnant women, elderly people, and people with weakened immune system. Human infection is rare but may be fatal, and lead to meningitis, blood poisoning or death (morality rate is around 20%). Healthier individuals may suffer from high fever, severe headache, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Listeria infection can also cause miscarriages among pregnant women. Listeria does not survive cooking or pasteurizing, but may infect cooked or pasteurized food, especially when surface sterilization is lacking. (image)

Matt Stonie, an American competitive eater, is (hopefully) the only human who ever consumed over 5 pounds of packaged hummus. It looks like a car accident and as far as health is concerned it’s probably not much better. Matt Stonie, a 23 year old American and a competitive eater, ate 5 pounds and 5 ounces of Sabra Hummus in 6 minutes. Just in case you wondered: it’s 5 party size packages, about 6,000 calories and 430g of fat. Right from the beginning, it seems like Stonie doesn’t really enjoy this challenge. The heartburn started right after the first hummus package, by the looks of it. At 4:20 there’s a strong reflux response which by 5:13 almost becomes vomiting. To make a long story short: it’s not easy to watch and you can really skip this one, but once you started you might find it somewhat difficult to stop. Of course, it would have been wiser if he ate real homemade hummus instead, unless the idea was to also consume all the additives and preservatives that are commonly used in the packaged product. Matt Stonie holds 13 world records in the controversial sport of competitive eating, all from the past two years. In his Youtube channel there are [...](image)

“The Hummus Challenge”, inspired by the Ice Bucket Challenge, involves rubbing hummus on your face. If it wasn’t an industrial packaged hummus, we might considered participating. The Hummus Challenge is the the more comic, somewhat less coherent, version of the Ice Bucket Challenge which ןד a campaign aimed to raise awareness to ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). Initiated by IDF reserve soldiers stationed near Gaza, the Hummus Challenge is aimed to raise awareness to the fact that hummus is delicious and hamas is evil (much like our favorite Elon Gold sketch “Voting for Hummus“). So instead of dumping a bucket of ice on your head, it involves rubbing hummus over your face while explaining the cause – or contributing a sum of $100 to an NGO that supports Israeli soldiers. One might ask how come an annual defense budget of nearly $20 Billion is not enough to support the needs of man who risk their lives for their country. Many time, regardless of their own political opinion, which differs from those who sent them to fight. Also, while fresh hummus may actually be good for your skin, I’m not sure you can say the same about the industrialized packaged version which may contain various [...](image)

Sabra, the Israeli-American manufacturer of packaged hummus, has filed a citizen’s petition with the FDA to establish a standard of identity for hummus. Not a bad idea, but one may wonder what is Sabra’s real motivation. Sabra Dipping (owned by PepsiCo and Israeli hummus manufacturer Strauss) has asked the FDA to establish an official standard for hummus, in order to assure the quality and nutritional value of hummus products. In a press release that was sent to the media last week , Sabra claims the market is flooded with hummus imitations, which has little to do with the original paste. The company asked the FDA to make sure that foods will be allowed to be called “hummus” only if they’re made mainly from chickpeas and have at list 5% raw tahini in them. Great PR work, no doubt, for Sabra and for Hummus as well. And it’s not a totally bad idea, considering the fact that so many Americans think “hummus” is a generic word for pastes or semisolid foods in general. And true, the FDA already established standards of identity for other popular foods, such as peanut butter, ketchup, mayonnaise, and cream cheese. It’s a good way to make sure there are [...](image)

RMDLO is an innovative collapsible colander, which may change the way people drain their soaked chickpeas – among other things. The inventors are having a Kickstarter campaign to take it into mass production, and they need your help. Don’t know about you – I own three to five different colanders and strainers at any given time. There are the large ones, of course, which I use for chickpeas, pasta and other foods in relatively large quantities which are soaked or cooked then drained. I usually have two of those and 2-3 smaller colanders, for teas, herbs, gravies and such. So the advantages of having a collapsible colander like RMDLO (in the photo) – which may be the only kind I’ll ever need – is pretty clear to me, especially since it looks like a product that will survive longer than those I had until now. It may also replace my somewhat rusty steamer basket, which is basically a primitive ancestor of RMDLO. Another reason I purchased one (for 20 pound which is roughly $30) and sat to write a post about it, is that the inventor Ran Merkazy is my cousin (but hey – if it looked like a [...](image)

This is not halva, but it is a close relative. It is tasty, even addictive, comes from India and can be found in Israel. It does not include Tahini, but does include hummus. The product in the picture is called Soan Papdi. It is – are you sitting down? – an Indian halva that does not include Tahini, but does include… Hummus. Hummus flour, to be exact. Maybe calling it halva is not exactly right, considering it doesn’t include anything that remotely resembles sesame. But it’s taste, look and feel is definitely very close to halva, somewhere between normal halva and “halva hairs” (Persian fairy floss), with a strong aroma of cardamon. It is also as addictive as halva. Apparently, this is a traditional candy from the Bijnor region in India. It even has a Wikipedia entry. The candy is a relative of the Mediterranean halva. The missing link between them is the Persian candy Sohan, seasoned with saffron. We found many variations for each of these candies online. The common denominator between them is the combination of sugar (or honey) and fat (tahini, butter or Indian ghee), and mostly also cornflour or flour (hummus flour, in the Indian candy), [...](image)

Take that: a robot that slices the pita bread and wipes the hummus for you. Completely useless, but pretty cool. “More electricity, less work”, says an old commercial of Israel Electric Company, back in the days the company succeeded in producing more electricity than the national consumption (the government’s fault, now and then). Those naïve days are over, but we still prefer to wash our clothes in the washing machine, boil our coffee water in the electric kettle, and yes, also mince our hummus in the electric mixer. So how about a machine that will slice a piece of pita and “wipe” the hummus for you? This sounds a bit over the top, but someone thought he just had to build such a machine. In the following video you can see Hummus Machine 2.0, a robot that wipes hummus, developed by Izik Meir and Yuri Klebanov. The robot was presented in recently held Geekcon 2013 convention. We are not sure about this, but it’s certainly cool. The clip’s soundtrack, BTW, is from the song Hummus Metamtem (“hummus is fabulous”) by Jewish American Nigel Ha’Admor (“Nigel the rebbe”), which might get his own post.(image)